For the third year in a row, the latter stages of the Champions League have only added to the ache for Pep Guardiola and Manchester City. As if the pain of going out has not been enough, the subsequent rounds once more twist the knife into an already-troubling wound.
To think that there was such optimism after the quarter-final draw. With Real Madrid already out, City had avoided teams they most wanted to avoid. Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus were another round away and Lionel Messi's Barcelona would not be any trouble in a two-legged tie.
As it has turned out, surprise package Ajax would have been the reward for beating Tottenham - a team now 25 points behind them in the Premier League - and Liverpool are in the final. Not that Guardiola would have relished another test against Jurgen Klopp's team, but a one-off test that doesn't involve Anfield is the best way to meet them in the competition.
There's no doubt it's another huge opportunity missed for a club desperate to claim the top prize on the continent.
At the same time, do the last three years hint at a wider pattern that should give them encouragement as they look to improve on just one semi-final in their history in the competition?
It may be too early to say given this will be the first time in four that Real Madrid have not lifted the trophy but if the draw has looked open every time Guardiola's City have been knocked out, that seems to speak both to the improvement in the Blues and a diminishing of the traditional hierarchy.
The good news to take from recent failings is that, aside from the ones residing in the club itself, there should be fewer demons to exorcise going forward. That, though, does not mean City are necessarily programmed to win it.
There is no doubting the quality of the squad but the likelihood is that this year will be the fifth in the eight since Guardiola last lifted the trophy that the Champions League winners have not won their domestic league.
A coach that has adapted to ensure he is on course to claim eight league titles in ten years of coaching has only won two Champions Leagues, and maybe success in one form does not help the other; it could be said that City were caught short of competitive minutes when they ran into Liverpool last season, and the margins are so fine this time that a semi-final with Ajax could potentially have seen repercussions in the league during that exhausting April.
Having set the bar in English football and seen how others have (and haven't) gone about challenging it, the Blues must try and find the right formula to make an impression on Europe.
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